From prayers to fury: The journey of Bowe Bergdahl

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 image made from video obtained from the Voice Of Jihad website, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, right, stands with a Taliban member in eastern Afghanistan. On Wednesday, June 4, 2014, the Taliban released the video showing the handover of Bergdahl to U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.(AP Photo/Voice Of Jihad)
The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 image made from video obtained from the Voice Of Jihad website, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, right, stands with a Taliban member in eastern Afghanistan. On Wednesday, June 4, 2014, the Taliban released the video showing the handover of Bergdahl to U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.(AP Photo/Voice Of Jihad)

FILE - This Sunday, July 19, 2009 file photo about six miles west of Hailey, Idaho shows the childhood home of Bowe R. Bergdahl, who was taken prisoner in Afghanistan nearly three weeks earlier by members of a Taliban group. Bergdahl, a U.S. Army soldier, went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/John Miller)The Associated Press

FILE - This Sunday, July 19, 2009 file photo about six miles west of Hailey, Idaho shows the childhood home of Bowe R. Bergdahl, who was taken prisoner in Afghanistan nearly three weeks earlier by members of a Taliban group. Bergdahl, a U.S. Army soldier, went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/John Miller)

FILE - This undated photo provided by Bergdahl family spokesperson Sue Martin shows Bowe Bergdahl during a motorcycle ride through central Idaho's backcountry. Bergdahl, a U.S. Army soldier, went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released by the Taliban on May 31, 2014. (AP Photo/Bergdahl family)The Associated Press

FILE - This undated photo provided by Bergdahl family spokesperson Sue Martin shows Bowe Bergdahl during a motorcycle ride through central Idaho's backcountry. Bergdahl, a U.S. Army soldier, went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released by the Taliban on May 31, 2014. (AP Photo/Bergdahl family)

FILE - This undated photo provided by the U.S. Army shows Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released by the Taliban on May 31, 2014. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/U.S. Army)The Associated Press

FILE - This undated photo provided by the U.S. Army shows Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released by the Taliban on May 31, 2014. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/U.S. Army)

FILE - This image from video made available by IntelCenter shows a Taliban propaganda video released Friday, Dec. 25, 2009 purportedly showing U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl who was captured over five months earlier in eastern Afghanistan. The man identifies himself as Bergdahl, born in Sun Valley, Idaho, and gives his rank, birth date, blood type, his unit and mother's maiden name before beginning a lengthy verbal attack on the U.S. conduct of the war in Afghanistan and its relations with Muslims. (AP Photo/IntelCenter)The Associated Press

FILE - This image from video made available by IntelCenter shows a Taliban propaganda video released Friday, Dec. 25, 2009 purportedly showing U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl who was captured over five months earlier in eastern Afghanistan. The man identifies himself as Bergdahl, born in Sun Valley, Idaho, and gives his rank, birth date, blood type, his unit and mother's maiden name before beginning a lengthy verbal attack on the U.S. conduct of the war in Afghanistan and its relations with Muslims. (AP Photo/IntelCenter)

FILE - This image made from video released Wednesday, April 7, 2010 by the the Site Intelligence Group from the Taliban shows U.S. soldier Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl. In the video, Bergdahl, captured in Afghanistan in June 2009, says he wants to return to his family in Idaho and that the war in Afghanistan is not worth the number of lives that have been lost or wasted in prison. (AP Photo/Site Intelligence Group)The Associated Press

FILE - This image made from video released Wednesday, April 7, 2010 by the the Site Intelligence Group from the Taliban shows U.S. soldier Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl. In the video, Bergdahl, captured in Afghanistan in June 2009, says he wants to return to his family in Idaho and that the war in Afghanistan is not worth the number of lives that have been lost or wasted in prison. (AP Photo/Site Intelligence Group)

FILE - This image made from video released by the Taliban and obtained by IntelCenter on Dec. 8, 2010, shows a man believed to be Bowe Bergdahl at left. Bergdahl, a U.S. Army soldier, went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/IntelCenter, File) MANDATORY CREDIT: INTELCENTER; NO SALES; EDS NOTE: "INTELCENTER" AT LEFT TOP CORNER ADDED BY SOURCEThe Associated Press

FILE - This image made from video released by the Taliban and obtained by IntelCenter on Dec. 8, 2010, shows a man believed to be Bowe Bergdahl at left. Bergdahl, a U.S. Army soldier, went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/IntelCenter, File) MANDATORY CREDIT: INTELCENTER; NO SALES; EDS NOTE: "INTELCENTER" AT LEFT TOP CORNER ADDED BY SOURCE

FILE - In this Saturday, June 22, 2013 file photo, supporters of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, ride their bikes in the "Bring Bowe Back" celebration in Hailey, Idaho held to honor the captive soldier. Hundreds of activists for missing service members gathered Saturday to hear the parents of the only known U.S. prisoner of war speak just days after his Taliban captors announced they want to exchange him for prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, June 22, 2013 file photo, supporters of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, ride their bikes in the "Bring Bowe Back" celebration in Hailey, Idaho held to honor the captive soldier. Hundreds of activists for missing service members gathered Saturday to hear the parents of the only known U.S. prisoner of war speak just days after his Taliban captors announced they want to exchange him for prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

FILE - In this Saturday, June 22, 2013 file photo, Gulf War veteran Ron Coumerilh wears a sticker to support captive U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl at the "Bring Bowe Back" celebration in Hailey, Idaho. Hundreds of activists for missing service members gathered Saturday to hear the parents of the only known U.S. prisoner of war speak just days after his Taliban captors announced they want to exchange him for prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, June 22, 2013 file photo, Gulf War veteran Ron Coumerilh wears a sticker to support captive U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl at the "Bring Bowe Back" celebration in Hailey, Idaho. Hundreds of activists for missing service members gathered Saturday to hear the parents of the only known U.S. prisoner of war speak just days after his Taliban captors announced they want to exchange him for prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

FILE - In this Thursday, June 5, 2014 file photo, Sue Martin, a Bergdahl family friend and owner of Zaney's coffee shop in Hailey, Idaho, watches the crowd of media on the street outside. Martin closed her shop following U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's release in Afghanistan in a prisoner swap with the Taliban to focus on serving as the family's spokesperson. Bowe had worked at the shop when he lived in the town. (AP Photo/Brian Skoloff)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Thursday, June 5, 2014 file photo, Sue Martin, a Bergdahl family friend and owner of Zaney's coffee shop in Hailey, Idaho, watches the crowd of media on the street outside. Martin closed her shop following U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's release in Afghanistan in a prisoner swap with the Taliban to focus on serving as the family's spokesperson. Bowe had worked at the shop when he lived in the town. (AP Photo/Brian Skoloff)

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 file photo, Sondra Van Ert, co-owner of Baldy Sports, ties balloons to a bike trailer in front of her store to celebrate the news of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's release in Hailey, Idaho, his hometown. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/The Times-News, Ashley Smith)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 file photo, Sondra Van Ert, co-owner of Baldy Sports, ties balloons to a bike trailer in front of her store to celebrate the news of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's release in Hailey, Idaho, his hometown. Bergdahl went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/The Times-News, Ashley Smith)

FILE - In this Saturday, June 22, 2013 file photo, Bob Bergdahl, right, and Jani Bergdahl, the parents of captive U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, hold hands as they pray at the "Bring Bowe Back" celebration held to honor Sgt. Bergdahl in Hailey, Idaho. Hundreds of activists for missing service members gathered in the town to hear the parents of the only known U.S. prisoner of war speak just days after his Taliban captors announced they want to exchange him for prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, June 22, 2013 file photo, Bob Bergdahl, right, and Jani Bergdahl, the parents of captive U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, hold hands as they pray at the "Bring Bowe Back" celebration held to honor Sgt. Bergdahl in Hailey, Idaho. Hundreds of activists for missing service members gathered in the town to hear the parents of the only known U.S. prisoner of war speak just days after his Taliban captors announced they want to exchange him for prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 file photo, President Barack Obama shakes hands with Bob Bergdahl as Jani Bergdahl stands at left, during a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington about the release of their son, U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. The soldier went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 file photo, President Barack Obama shakes hands with Bob Bergdahl as Jani Bergdahl stands at left, during a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington about the release of their son, U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. The soldier went missing from his outpost in Afghanistan in June 2009 and was released from Taliban captivity on May 31, 2014 in exchange for five enemy combatants held in the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 image made from video obtained from the Voice Of Jihad website, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, a Taliban member looks at a helicopter carrying U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl taking off in eastern Afghanistan. On Wednesday, June 4, 2014, the Taliban released the video showing the handover of Bergdahl to U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Voice Of Jihad)The Associated Press

FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 image made from video obtained from the Voice Of Jihad website, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, a Taliban member looks at a helicopter carrying U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl taking off in eastern Afghanistan. On Wednesday, June 4, 2014, the Taliban released the video showing the handover of Bergdahl to U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Voice Of Jihad)

Bowe Bergdahl stands, hands at his sides, his loose-fitting Pashtun smock and pants bright white against the rocky landscape. The hillsides are dotted with armed Afghans, rifles ready.

A Black Hawk appears in the clouds. After almost five years in captivity, the American soldier, head shaved, eyes blinking, is about to finally see freedom.

"We've been looking for you for a long time," a member of a special forces team shouts over the roar of the copter. Bergdahl breaks down.

It was supposed to be a moment for celebration, America's only military captive in the 13-year Afghan conflict free at last. And in his hometown in Idaho, where trees are bedecked with yellow ribbons and prayers never stopped, indeed it is.

But for the rest of the country, Bergdahl's capture and release have thrust him into a furious debate.

From members of Congress to his own former platoon mates, a storm of critics are livid because Bergdahl was captured after walking away from his post and then released in a swap for five Taliban prisoners. Some also question whether soldiers died as part of efforts to save him.

"He's a deserter, in every sense of the word," said Evan Buetow, Bergdahl's former Army team leader. "And when we got him back ... and he was being heralded as a hero and he served honorably and he's this example that people need to look to — that's exactly the opposite of what he is."

Now, as he prepares to head home, these both are true: As a prisoner, Bergdahl endured a lengthy captivity, a fate no one would wish on another. But as a soldier, Bergdahl's decision to leave his unit endangered the comrades who fruitlessly hunted for him.

Everyday Americans now ask: Is he a victim? A traitor? Are we meant to empathize or admonish?

It's a complicated paradox surrounding a complicated man.

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Bergdahl grew up with his parents and older sister Sky amid the breathtaking peaks and valleys of the Sawtooth Mountains. Their home, a humble place with a weather-beaten roof, sits nestled among hills of alder and sage.

There are schools in Hailey, Idaho, 6 miles down the road, but Bergdahl and his sister were taught at home, and he received a GED from a local college. His father worked as a UPS driver.

Hailey, a town of 7,000 that sprang up more than a century ago during a mining boom, is part blue-collar community and part resort town, a funky alternative to the nearby Sun Valley ski resort that's a winter playground for Hollywood celebrities.

The blond, lanky kid grew up, by all accounts, an explorer. At 17, he sparred at a renaissance fair with the Sun Valley Swords fencing club. He danced into his early 20s with the Sun Valley Ballet School.

Bergdahl loved his bicycle, eschewed driving, sought adventures.

He bounced from job to job before enlisting at 22, on an Alaskan fishing boat and construction sites, cleaning guns and stocking targets at the shooting club, crewing on a sailboat trip from South Carolina to California, slinging joe at the coffeehouse.